text:
DaVinci Technology ZeroG (technology demonstrator)
ZeroG (technology demonstrator)
DaVinci Technology, Ltd
Hanoi, Vietnam and Chicago, Illinois, USA
www.da-vinci.us
DaVinci Technology was founded in Jan. 2017 by Trí Đinh Quốc in Hanoi, Vietnam and also has offices in Chicago, Illinois (USA). The team started to build their first hybrid-electric vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) passenger technology demonstrator in 2015. The research and development team has four electronics and aerodynamic engineers, three flight controller firmware and application software engineers, and two concept designers and mechanical designers.
The ZeroG technology demonstrator is a one passenger eVTOL multicopter that has 12 propellers, 12 electric motors, has a maximum speed of 70 km/h (44 mph), a range of 50 km (31 m) and has a flight time of 20 minutes. The pilot sits in the middle of the aircraft in an open cockpit and flies the demonstrator with a joystick. The pilot uses a motorcycle helmet, jumpsuit and gloves for safety.
The fuselage is a small vertically shaped hexagon with the pilot in the middle of the fuselage. There is an open hexagon frame that fits on the top of the fuselage with struts branching out to a slightly larger hexagon frame where the propellers and electric motors are attached. The landing gear has a hexagon frame with struts in the horizontal position and there are very small wheels attached to the bottom end of each strut. The empty weight of the demonstrator is 55 kg (110 lb), the maximum payload weight is 80 kg (176 lb) and the maximum takeoff weight is 135 kg (298 lb).
The company made subscale multicopter demonstrators as well as this full scale crewed technology demonstrator. DaVinci Technology has made videos of the full scale crewed technology demonstrator flying successfully but it is unknown how many flights the demonstrator has flown.
ZeroG technology demonstrator parked in a grass field
ZeroG technology demonstrator with pilot getting ready for flight
ZeroG technology demonstrator with pilot
Aircraft type: eVTOL passenger multicopter technology demonstrator
Piloting: 1 pilot
Maximum speed: 70 km/h (44 mph)
Range: 50 km (31 m)
Propellers: 12 propellers
Electric motors: 12 electric motors
Power source: Batteries
Fuselage: Carbon fiber composite
Windows: Open cockpit
Landing gear: 6 struts with very small wheels the bottom of each strut
Company Insights:
FutureFlight
Transport Up
DaVinci Technology website
Tri Dinh Quoc YouTube Channel
Tri Dinh Quoc LinkedIn
Video: Take Off, Tri Dinh Quoc, Aug. 11, 2016
Video: ZeroG Manned Drone, Tri Dinh Quoc, Dec. 23, 2017
Video: Davinci ZeroG Manned Multicopter NAVLOG #53, Drone & Sundry, Jan. 3, 2018
Article: DaVinci Flies Away a Winner, Medium, July 10, 2018
Article: Meet the Teams, GoFlyPrize, Mar. 5, 2019


Prime 1 Studio is proud to present the first 1:5 Scale CMDC-01: Batman Incorporated Suit from Batman: Arkham Knight. Batman: Arkham Knight is a 2015 action-adventure video game developed by Rocksteady Studios. The game is the third game in the franchise to be developed by Rocksteady, the team which created both Asylum and City and acts as the final chronological game in the series. Batman Incorporated Suit also known as Batman Inc. skin is available as a free content for all platforms. This Concept Masterline statue comes with interchangeable left-hand holding a Batarang. The Exclusive version of CMDC-01EX: Batman Inc. suit included an additional alternate Portrait. This is the first 1:5 scale statue from Batman: Arkham Knight. Don't miss out to add this in your Batman collections.


What are your hours of operation for blueberry picking?
Our 2019 Harvest Nights/Days will take place once a month. Please visit our events page for more info! Any additional picking days will be posted as they become available. Please follow us on Facebook to get your Blueberry News as fast as possible!
What are the best times to pick?
We recommend early morning and early evening. It can be warmer during the middle of the day.
Do you offer Group Rates and reservations for groups?
Yes! We offer a discount for groups of 15 or more! Click here to download our Group Rates form and make your reservation today!
Just a hat and some sunscreen! We provide containers for picking and bags to take berries home. Dress comfortable and closed-toe shoes are recommended.
May I bring my own containers for picking?
What is the price for pick-your-own blueberries?
Do you have pre-picked berries if I don't want to pick them?
Yes we do! We will be posting a list of when and where to get them as soon as they become available.
What is the price of pre-picked berries?
Can I taste the berries while I pick?
We encourage some tasting while you pick! We use no pesticides or chemicals EVER so you can eat right from the bush.
Can I bring my kids along?
We LOVE kids! So pack up the family and bring them with you! We'll tell 'em a thing or two about blueberries and they'll have a blast!
For the comfort of everyone and because we're an organic farm, we ask that you do not bring your pets. Pets are a violation of USDA ORGANIC STANDARDS. We love them, but please leave them at home.
How many varieties do you have?
The average farm has only 5 – 8 varieties while we have FIFTEEN! All sweet and delicious. If you're not certain about which variety you want, we'll tell you about each one when you arrive.
What does organically grown mean?
It means we use no conventional herbicides, pesticides or chemicals at any time in the life of our blueberry plants. We use a special, proprietary nutrient mix that contains nothing but natural ingredients to nourish the plants and ensure fabulous fruit. We are a certified organic blueberry farm!
Will blueberries ripen after being picked?
No. Unlike bananas or peaches, blueberries do not ripen after being picked. If they are picked red or green they will not turn blue or become sweeter later.
How do I freeze the berries?
To freeze, DO NOT WASH your berries – put them in a single layer on a cookie sheet in the freezer; after frozen, place them in sealed plastic freezer bags.
We accept cash, credit cards and checks.
Weeks Bay Plantation is an organic farm and so much more. From blueberry picking and live music to water skiing and working farm tours or field trips, we offer a one-of-a-kind, all encompassing organic experience. Located in the heart of Baldwin County, we are the perfect destination for all things outdoors. Start planning your next visit, your wedding, a farm-to-table experience, a night out with live music or whatever organic adventure you desire, now!


text:
Dr Johnny Ryan FRHistS
Assorted Materials
Biog & press
"RTB" adtech & GDPR
Unipolar moment or unipolar era?
5 February 2005 18 March 2014 ~ johnnyryan
UNIPOLAR MOMENT OR UNIPOLAR ERA: THE FUTURE OF AMERICA'S ASSERTIVE GRAND STRATEGY
In the run up to the 2000 election, Condoleezza Rice laid out the central tenet of candidate Bush's foreign policy manifesto: 'Foreign policy in a Republican administration will … proceed from the firm ground of the national interest, not from the interests of an illusory international community'.[1] Five years later, one European newspaper marked President Bush's second inauguration by announcing 'world fears new Bush era' on its front page.[2] In the interim, an aggressive foreign policy agenda and style had upset America's singular position in the world. According to Bush, 'the president's goal is not to take an international poll'.[3] However, had he done so, he would have discovered a global plummet in US favorability ratings. Even in Britain, where the 83 percent had viewed the US favorably as the Clinton era ended, only 48 percent did so by March 2003.[4] American favorability ratings fell further among US allies within the Muslim world – to 1 percent in Jordan and 12 percent in Turkey in May 2003.[5] Despite the enormity of US power, world opinion counts. By abandoning internationalism and by the shortsighted use of American power without reference to legitimizing diplomatic initiatives, the Bush foreign policy has eroded the foundations of American preeminence. As the National Intelligence Council (NIC) concluded, the decline in US favorability ratings in many major states 'is perhaps the most important unknown dynamic that could quickly and unexpectedly lead to dramatic shifts in state strategies toward the United States'.[6] Even though its key objectives rely upon the maintenance of a convivial unipolar order, America's aggressive grand strategy and haughty unilateralism threaten to reduce the unipolar moment to a unipolar instant. This paper will examine the relative merits of internationalism and unilateralism in the unipolar world, and will consider the dangers of a continued aggressive, unilateral grand strategy.
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Despite the opprobrium which it poured on America in the run up to the Iraq invasion, Europe had been generally untroubled by the lack of American respect for the UN and Security Council during the cold war period.[7] The dark alternative of Soviet expansion cast all shades of American leadership in a lighter tone, and the restraint which Soviet reactive capacity imposed on American action gave the middle powers confidence.[8] For DeGaulle's France and Brandt's Germany, self-interest, rather than the formal sanction of international institutions, legitimized American action. Yet in the post cold war era there is no Soviet threat to legitimize American action. Nor can other nations be reassured of American restraint in the new unipolar world. America is at once more capable of acting unilaterally, and its unilateral actions are more likely to be perceived as threats by other nations. Moreover, as the 1990s progressed, America's position relative to the other powers grew stronger. Europe concentrated on integration, Japan and Asia suffered economic convulsion, and the Soviet nations struggled to come to terms with the post Communist era. The early 1990s witnessed the advent of the American 'unipolar moment', which continues to the present day.[9] However, a nation with power has the tendency to generate a perception of threat among lesser nations by virtue of its capabilities rather than its intent. In what sixteenth century statesmen would refer to as alliance against universal monarchy, the threatened nations form counterbalancing coalitions to check the capabilities of the dominating or potentially dominating power.[10] 'International politics abhors unbalanced power', according to Waltz, 'as nature abhors a vacuum'.[11] Yet there was no significant counter balancing against US power in the immediate post-cold war era. The world largely accepted rather than resisted unipolarity. Stephen Walt handily explains this by the 'balance of threat' theory which argues that nations react against perceived threats, not against power.[12] America's institutional commitments, internal democratic politics, and its geographic position are oft cited as factors that minimize the threat which other nations perceived it to pose. During the post-cold war period, the US maintained an internationalist foreign policy with some respect for liberal institutionalism and institutional restraints. As decade progressed, America's maintenance and expansion of cold war alliances and relationships signaled that it would stay on the same foreign policy course that it had adhered to since the end of WW2. While the US pursued some military operations without reference to UN and NATO, this was limited to those that were cases that were internationally acceptable. Despite the enormity of its military power, the US generally sought consensus to minimize diplomatic liabilities when engaging in potentially controversial foreign policy initiatives such as military interventions. The hegemon understood the necessity of legitimizing its actions. Its hegemony was unquestionable, but the direct threat it posed to the other powers in the world was discounted by the convivial stability it policed. As the Die Zeit editor Josef Joffe puts it, 'America irks and domineers, but it does not conquer. It tries to call the shots and bend the rules, but it does not go to war for land and glory'.[13]
To Max Boot, this restrained approach was 'scandalously irresolute' in the absence of a Communist counterweight to American empire. Clinton refrained from imposing solutions upon 'troubled lands [that] today cry out for the sort of enlightened foreign administration once provided by self-confident Englishmen in jodhpurs and pith helmets'.[14] Even before the neo conservative nation builders and region transformers came to the fore of US policymaking, President Bush Jr's foreign policy was set upon a revolutionary course that suggested its obliviousness to diplomatic costs and distain for the internationalist cold and post cold war foreign policy. The Bush team had canvassed on an isolationist foreign policy agenda which included missile defense and withdrawal from the Balkans at a very early stage.[15] They inherited America's hub and spoke architecture of alliances upon which the world order is structured, and proposed to pull out the hub. Much as America's earlier decision not to join the League of Nations had done, the isolationist policy showed a lack of interest in world affairs and a lack of appreciation for the singular position America occupied at as the focus of an alliance based international system. From the outset, the Bush administration had little interest in the world order over which it presided. Even before 9-11 and the subsequent neo-conservative policies, the Bush administration had little appreciation for America's role as 'indispensable nation'. Since America was the lynch pin of the international order, the very notion of American isolationism was antithetical to previous policy in which America benefited from, and provided the basis for, 'global public goods'.[16] These goods include regional security assurances in the Middle East, Asia and Central Europe, promotion of free trade, security in international waters. Bush Sr. and Clinton had sought to extend these benefits of order over international anarchy to give American unipolarity an appreciable value to other nations. In short, the immediate post cold war Presidents sought to be underwriters of the international order. Bush Jr. sought isolationism initially, and unilateralism eventually, both of which corroded the international order. The new administration viewed existing close knit alliances and the restraints they imposed as obsolete in the context of America's undisputed dominance. Condoleezza Rice remarked that 'the Clinton administration's … pursuit of, at best, illusory "norms" of international behavior have become an epidemic'.[17] Accordingly, maintaining good relations with other world powers took a back seat, and foreign policy became characterized with a hardheaded unwillingness to compromise. As one observer warns, the Bush foreign policy and its disregard for allies and international opinion is a 'geostrategic wreaking ball that will destroy America's half-century old international architecture'.[18]
Policy hawks in the Bush Jr. administration viewed the Clinton years as a missed opportunity to extend American influence in a world free of a communist alternative.[19] They gave a revolutionary definition to post 9-11 foreign policy and the attacks gave them the political capital necessary to make bold unilateral moves.[20] The neo conservatives' ascendance to power under the Bush administration recalled Kissinger's complaints about the neo conservatives in the early 1980s: 'a group of accommodation-prone, European-influenced leaders was overcome by the knights-errant who suddenly appeared on the scene and prevailed in short order by proclaiming the distinction between good and evil and the revolutionary role of democratic principles'.[21] Albright's view that 'freedom is America's purpose, like other profound human aspirations, it can never be fully achieved', was an anathema to the neo-conservatives.[22] Feith's statement on Iraq and Afghanistan is one example of their ambitious foreign policy agenda: 'In Iraq and Afghanistan, democratization has begun. … It would be desirable if the Middle East reached a political turning point similar to the points in history when Asian democracy and Latin American democracy blossomed and spread rapidly'.[23] This aggressive foreign policy program, and the uncompromising and fractious manner in which it was pursued in the face of international opposition, suggests to long established allies that the US is not interested in their concerns or objectives. Writing about the faults in policymaking during the Vietman War, Hans Morgenthau described a 'pathology of international politics' in which the policy makers impose an a priori picture 'derived from folklore and ideological assumption' on reality, 'refus[e] to correct this picture in the light of experience … and the use of intelligence for the purpose … of interpreting reality to fit policy'.[24] Zbigniew Brzezinski believes the same is true of post 9-11 neo conservative policymakers: 'within a somewhat doctrinaire setting of like-minded top level officials a tendency develops towards mutually reinforcing self-delusions. Desires, phobias, aspirations, and even passions then are melded into a perspective in which reality becomes easily distorted'.[25] Naturally, if the other nations of the world fear that a crusading, unrealistic zeal has overcome the world's chief power, they are more likely to react against that power rather than engage with it. A hegemon on a revolutionary crusade is more threatening to other nations than one who upholds the world order.
Thus the Bush administration, whose isolationism had been a threat to the established world order at the outset, became a revolutionary threat to the international order. Dismissive of the internationalist consultative approach, which entailed compromise, agreement, and the dilution of American decision making, the neo conservatives pursued this revolutionary international agenda purely on the basis of American power, rejecting legitimizing institutions and undercutting the established basis of American leadership. Not only did the substance of their policy imply new threats to other nations, but perceptions of threat were exacerbated by the style of its articulation. Francois Heisbourg has observed that, in diplomacy, style can be as important as substance.[26] This was lost on the incoming Bush team. The National Security Strategy (NSS) and the Nuclear Posture Review (NPR) provide examples of the Bush approach and the reactions it garnered. The NSS and NPR were aggressively framed to replace unspoken understandings about American use of preemption with bold assertions of America's right to launch preemptive strikes. Even though there had been a longstanding tacit acceptance of preemption in international affairs, the unabashed statement of American dominance provoked widespread international opposition. When Bush Jr threatened Iraq, the Europeans claimed that UN authorization was a prerequisite, despite Iraq's longstanding breech of UN resolution 688. Yet European forces actually participated in the 1999 Kosovo air campaign despite the absence of an explicit Security Council mandate. Clinton, despite presiding over the same position of American unipolar power, enjoyed a margin for maneuver in international politics that his successor lacks. Though Clinton's approach was less bombastic and militaristic than post-9/11 Bush foreign policy, his 'enlargement and engagement', much like Bush Sr's 'new world order', was not strictly a status quo policy.[27] Indeed, it was in keeping with the demands of offensive realism.[28] Yet Clinton sought and enjoyed international support for his activist foreign policy.[29] During the 1990s, American influence expanded eastwards to Russia's borders through NATO and the Partnership for Peace. He acted without Security Council sanction in Bosnia, Haiti, and Kosovo. As Sandy Berger writes, in summing up the advantages of the Clinton administration's consultative approach over the Bush approach, 'our natural allies are much more likely to be persuaded by the power of our arguments than by the argument of American power'.[30] The consultative approach, shunned by the Bush administration, was an essential element to reducing the perception of threat arising from American power. As Zakaria points out, Roosevelt made the forty hour sea and air journey to Tehran and Yalta in a terrible physical condition, with ten pounds of steel leg braces in tow, at the height of America's relative global power. Would Bush have attended given the same circumstances, or would he have sent a deputy? [31]
A crucial question for US policymakers must be whether the US can continue to achieve its foreign policy goals at little cost as it did in the Bush and Clinton years. In the new international situation, other nations are adapting to American preeminence. Some resist American power, and others attempt to engage with it in order to influence how it is used.[32] Continued clumsy assertiveness in the mode of the first Bush Jr term could promote defensive regionalism, soft balancing, and eventual counterbalancing by regional blocs. By disrupting the status quo and arousing such reactions, Washington runs the risk of intensifying the placid reactions that potential balancers have adopted to its unipolar power since the end of the cold war. Nation states and regions are not 'hard' balancing against US power in overt coalitions, but they are engaging in other forms of strategic reactions to unipolarity.[33] Less overt strategic responses which rarely tackle the United States head on can undermine its influence and the ease with which it can achieve its foreign policy objectives. European initiatives for a credible separate military capability and ASEAN consolidation are examples of 'buffering' – regional movements towards policy cooperation and coordination in the face of global hegemonic power (and, admittedly, other concerns). The disincentives against overt balancing of US hegemonic power are great, and the US does not at the present time pose an immediate threat to the interest of important powers. Yet the friction caused by the Iraq War prompted Europeans to discuss their Union's roll as a counterweight to American power. When polled, European respondents indicated that they felt Europe should be as powerful as America.[34] This 'buffering' reaction to American power could someday provide a framework of support for a rising regional hegemon to challenge US power. The US should therefore avoid arousing regional buffering reactions. States can also adopt the soft measures of withholding consent and cooperation for American ventures, as the French and Germans did at the Security Council during the Iraq WMD debates. Crucially, this can include denying strategic assets and troop commitment to the United States, as Turkey did during the invasion, and denying legitimacy, which hinders US diplomatic power. As the Iraq War and its aftermath demonstrate, these are capable balancing measures which can restrict the US margin for maneuver in international affairs. This is particularly true in the context of America's casualty averse domestic public opinion. The US, which had shunned old Europe and the UN, returned to request support and legitimacy when the occupation became a heavy burden. It is logical to conclude that the more likely America is to adhere to established rule based multilateralism, seeking international legitimacy for its foreign policy endeavors, the more likely nations will feel they have more to gain from engaging with American power rather than resisting it. The consultative internationalist approach can afford America a greater margin for maneuver at less cost in the longer term than the bombastic unilateral approach. Should America loose margin for maneuver and international support, two key goals for the coming century would be seriously undermined: countering the challenge posed by mass-casualty terrorism, and preventing a return to great power confrontation, nuclear proliferation and war.
The nation-state and usurper non-state actors are at an historic cross-road. As the leading nation-state, America faces the task of asserting the nation-states' monopoly on mass-casualty and nuclear capabilities against the challenge of increasingly potent non-state actors.[35] Not only is America a primary target for such actors, but its power depends on the status quo of state supremacy. Therefore, American interest demands the most effective response to the usurping non-state actors. This goal is best met through a cooperative approach within the framework of a benign hegemony. As Powell put the State Department view, 'we do not see the war against terrorism and the nurturing of constructive relationships among major powers as mutually exclusive tasks. … We seek enhanced great power cooperation with an eye towards success in the war on terrorism'.[36] Great power competition and weak international institutions would make a cohesive response to non-state actors impossible. Therefore every means towards a stable international order in which international institutions can facilitate apprehension and intervention might be preferable to the prospect of an isolated, bombastic America unilaterally pursuing terrorists with coalitions of the willing in toe. Krauthammer makes the point that Bush's assertive, unilateral posture is a more effective stick to gain foreign cooperation in the war on terror than the various carrots that Clinton favored. He gives the example of Yemen and the USS Cole bombing. While the Clinton administration received inadequate support from Yemen in the Cole investigation, the Bush tough line actually pressured Yemen to join the war on terror coalition.[37] This logic runs parallel to Donald Rumsfeld's favorite Al Capone quote: 'You will get more with a kind word and a gun than with a kind word alone'.[38] Yet since Schroeder in Germany, Lula in Brazil, and Roh in South Korea have all exploited domestic anti-American sentiment to secure their election victories, the 'gun' becomes an unreliable tool because domestic politics around the world could return radically anti-American leaders in nations where US pressure is applied with too much force. The problem, as Berger noted in 2004, is that 'we can compel, but far too often we cannot persuade'.[39]
Despite the threats posed by mass-casualty terrorism, the most important long term priority of US policymakers remains the maintenance of peace between nuclear armed nations. Nuclear war between states remains the most dangerous prospect in international affairs. While the fatalities and physical damage caused by a terrorist nuclear strike would be considerable, they would be relatively low in comparison to a nuclear exchange between nations.[40] Biological or radiological attacks by terrorists would pale in comparison.[41] Despite unipolarity, it is not farfetched to discuss the dangers of nuclear war. If the international environment becomes less convivial, nations may find it necessary to develop nuclear capabilities in order to ward off the threat of American power.[42] Indian Defense Minister George Fernandez provides some insight: 'before one challenges the United States, one must first acquire nuclear weapons.'[43] In 1998, North Korea tested its three stage Taepo-dong ballistic missile. The restraint with which American officials have talked and acted about nuclear equipped North Korea compared to the bombastic rhetoric and threats leveled at potentially nuclear Iran illustrates the attractions of nuclear proliferation in an imperial, rather than benign, unipolar world. North Korea recently declared its nuclear capabilities on 10 February 2005, citing US rhetoric about regime change in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK):
This compels us to take a measure to bolster its nuclear weapons arsenal in order to protect the ideology, system, freedom and democracy chosen by its people. … The DPRK has clarified its stand that it would not pursue anti-Americanism and [will] treat the US as a friendly nation if it neither slanders the political system in the DPRK nor interferes in its internal affairs.[44]
Though the North Korean nuclear capability is probably limited and unreliable at best, and bluff at worst, its announcement may have the effect to moderating American policy towards Pyongyang. The attraction of nuclear arms in a world where the unipolar power behaves aggressively are manifold, and only a multilateral non-proliferation system can address the problem. Despite Cheney's apocalyptic prediction in 1990 that by the year 2000, two dozen developing nations would have ballistic missiles, the divisive nuclear defense program will leave the US mainland exposed for at least a decade – assuming the system works.[45] Missile defense might be a means to return to the days before long-range bombers and ballistic missile technology when oceans protected America, but it is not clear whether the system is effective. If American posture becomes adequately threatening and unpredictable, states equipped with untested rudimentary nuclear devices, and perhaps fully fledged nuclear programs, could multiply and threaten American overseas interests, and possibly the mainland, and proliferate further. One critic of Clinton's foreign policy suggests that an internationalist treaty based approach to so-called 'rogue states' is irrelevant since they are not reliable signatories, yet this misses the point.[46] Treaties are not merely legal documents dependent upon the reliability of signatories, but are also examples of America's willingness to abide by the international norms that Rice dismissed. Whether or not a 'rogue state' cosignatory is credible, American treaty commitments have the effect of reducing perceptions of American threat, thereby minimizing the incentive to seek nuclear weapons.
The existing unipolar configuration of world power, unstable and dependent upon Washington's prudent internationalist leadership though it might be, can minimize the risk of great power confrontation and nuclear proliferation among lesser states, and maximize efforts to face off potent non-state actors. Since the end of the Cold War, America has occupied a privileged position in world affairs. Though possessing unipolar power, its acceptance of institutional restraints and multilateral processes minimized the perception that US power posed a threat to the other nations of the world. This allowed it to achieve its foreign policy goals at little cost. Nonetheless, the hegemon walked a tightrope between over exploiting its dominant power and maintaining international consensus behind its foreign policy initiatives. President Bush's aggressive foreign policy style and rejection of internationalism threaten this privileged position. The US now pursues foreign policy objectives that disrupt the world order rather than underwrite it. Waltz writes that international politics is 'too serious a business' for simply maximizing power when a softly, softly approach might adequately guarantee a nation's security.[47] Yet the confidence that comes with unipolarity obscures such logic. As Stephen Walt observes, 'great power may or may not corrupt, but it certainly tempts; and self-restraint is not a cardinal US virtue'.[48] By eschewing the unipolar prerogative at his disposal in the wake of the Soviet collapse, and by maintaining the alliances and inclusive approach of his predecessor, President Clinton maintained the legitimacy that cold war competition and restraints had previously afforded. Yet even with Clinton's internationalist consultative approach, American power was so great during the 1990s that it faced inevitable reactions. Huntington sensibly cautioned in 1999 that despite the benevolence of American leadership, 'benign hegemony, however, is in the eye of the hegemon'. Whispers of counterbalancing were already in the air at the close of the Clinton era.[49] Should other nations use diplomatic and economic power to 'soft balance' against the threat of US power, its ease of maneuver in international affairs will be reduced. Paul Kennedy identified two challenges that would test the longevity of American preeminence. Could the US maintain the capacity to sustain defense requirements? Could it preserve its technological and economic preeminence?[50] These two tests seem answered for the present, but a third test should be added. Can America maintain its peculiar role as benign hegemon in the global order? The current administration, preoccupied with the fruits of the material strengths to which Kennedy referred, has virtually ignored the third test. The Bush administration's aggressive foreign policy is eroding the basis for American leadership, and increasing the difficulty with which America can achieve its foreign policy goals. Yet the perils of nuclear proliferation, increasingly potent non-state actors, and the disruption of the unipolar order loom. America must return to less assertive policy or operate in a less convivial, and ultimately more dangerous, world. The 'unipolar moment' must not become a unipolar instant. [51]
[1] C. Rice, 'Promoting the national interest', Foreign Affairs (January – February 2000), p. 48, 62.[2] 'World fears new Bush era', The Guardian (20 January 2005).
[3] President Bush quoted in F. Zakaria, 'Americans eat cheese too', Newsweek (11 October 2004).
[4] Trends 2005, (Pew Research Centre, 2005), p. 106.
[6] G. J. Ikenberry, 'Strategic reactions to American preeminence: Great power politics in the age of unipolarity' (National Intelligence Council conference report, 28 July 2003).
[7] C. Krauthammer, 'The myth of UN support', The Washington Post (4 October 2002).
[8] R. Kagan, 'American crisis of legitimacy', Foreign Affairs, Mar. – April 2004.
[9] C. Krauthammer, 'the unipolar moment', Foreign Affairs America and the world edition (1991); for a vivid description of current military strength see P. Kennedy, 'The greatest superpower ever', New Perspectives Quarterly (Winter, 2002).
[10] H. Morgenthau, Politics among nations: the struggle for power and peace (brief edition, New York, 1993), pp 202-04.
[11] K. N. Waltz, The balance of power and NATO expansion (working paper, Berkeley Centre for German and European Studies, October 1998).
[12] S. M. Walt, 'Keeping the world 'off-balance'', in G. J. Ikenberry (ed.), America Unrivalled (New York, 2002).
[13] J. Joffe, 'Gulliver unbound: can America rule the world?', John Bonython lecture at the Centre for Independent Studies, Sydney, 6 August 2003.
[14] M. Boot, 'The case for American empire', The Weekly Standard (15 October 2001).
[15] 'Foreign policy teams coming of age', International Herald Tribune, 2 November 2000 (URL: http://www.iht.com/articles/166.html, accessed 9 February 2005).
[16] See J. S. Nye, The paradox of American power: why the world's only superpower can't go it alone (New York, 2002).
[17] C. Rice, 'Promoting the national interest', Foreign Affairs (January – February 2000), p. 48, 62.
[18] G. J. Ikenberry, 'The end of the neo-conservative moment', Survival (spring, 2004).
[19] On the Clinton years as a missed opportunity, see Statement of principles by the project for a new American century (3 June 1997).
[20] Among many accounts of the changes in the administration's outlook following 9/11 is N. Lemann, 'The next world order', The New Yorker (1 April 2002); see also Clarke, J. and Halper, S., America alone (Cambridge, 2004).
[21] H. Kissinger, 'Between the old left and the new right', Foreign Affairs (May – June 1999), p. 115.
[22] M. K. Albright, 'The testing of American foreign policy', Foreign Affairs (November – December 1998), p. 64.
[23] Department of Defense under secretary for policy Douglas Feith remarks at the Council on Foreign Relations (13 November 2003).
[24] H. Morgenthau, Politics among nations: the struggle for power and peace (brief edition, New York, 1993).
[25] Author's interview with Zbigniew Brzezinski, 2004.
[26] F. Heisbourg, 'A work in progress: the Bush doctrine and its consequences', Washington Quarterly (Spring, 2003).
[27] As Christopher Layne notes in his criticism of what he views as dangerous tendencies towards preponderance, see C. Layne, 'From preponderance to offshore balancing: America's future grand strategy', International Security (Summer, 1997); see also K. N. Waltz, The balance of power and NATO expansion (working paper, Berkeley Centre for German and European Studies, October 1998).
[28] J. Mearscheimer, The tragedy of great power politics (New York, 2001).
[29] F. Zakaria, 'Arrogant empire', Newsweek (24 March 2003).
[30] S. Berger, 'Foreign policy for a democratic president', Foreign Affairs, May – June 2004, p. 51.
[31] Zakaria, F., 'Arrogant empire', Newsweek (24 March 2003).
[32] G. J. Ikenberry, 'Strategic reactions to American preeminence: Great power politics in the age of unipolarity' (National Intelligence Council conference report, 28 July 2003).
[33] ibid.; see also S. M. Walt, 'Can the United States be balanced?: if so, how?', annual meeting of the American Political Science Association, 2 – 5 September 2004; J. S. Nye, 'The decline of America's soft power why Washington should worry' in Foreign Affairs (May/June 2004); For the European reaction, see C. A. Kupchan, 'Resent, resist, compete', The World Today, July 2004 and 'The rise of Europe, America's changing internationalism, and the end of U.S. primacy', Political Science Quarterly (Summer 2003); For a prediction of reduced US–Japanese amity, W. E. Rapp, 'Past its prime? The future of the US–Japan alliance', Parameters (2004).
[34] Trends 2005, (Pew Research Centre, 2005), p. 118.
[35] On the feasibility of non-state actors producing nuclear devices see R. A. Falkenrath, R. D. Newman, B. A. Thayer, America's Achilles heel: nuclear, biological, and chemical terrorism and covert attack (Belfer Centre Studies in International Security, Cambridge, MA, 2001).
[36] C. Powell, 'A strategy of partnerships', Foreign Affairs, Jan.-Feb. 2004, p. 29.
[37] C. Krauthammer, 'A new type of realism', The National Interest (Winter 2002-03).
[38] Quoted in F. Zakaria, 'Arrogant empire', Newsweek (24 March 2003).
[40] For estimation of a one kiloton explosion in a dense urban area see J. Stern, The ultimate terrorists (Cambridge, MA, 1999); see also The effects of nuclear war (Office of technology, 1980, New Jersey) for urban nuclear attack estimations.
[41] Known instances of chemical and biological terrorism employed crude delivery devices with maximum potential fatalities numbering only in the hundreds. See J. B. Tucker (ed.), Toxic terror: assessing terrorist use of chemical and biological weapons (Belfer Centre Studies in International Security, Cambridge, MA, 1999). Some estimates differ, claiming huge fatalities – e.g. see W. Laqueur, No end to war (London, 2004).
[42] Indeed, a recent NIC report estimated that a number of nations would seek nuclear weapons over the next fifteen years, Mapping the world's future: Report of the National Intelligence Council's 2020 project (December 2004).
[43] Quoted in R. McNamara, 'New Bush policy will cause spread of nuclear weapons globally', New Perspectives Quarterly (Winter 2002).
[44] Statement released through the KCNA news agency, available on BBC online (URL: news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4252515.stm, accessed on 11 February 2005).
[45] Cheney quoted in C. Krauthammer, 'The unipolar moment', Foreign Affairs America and the world edition (1991).
[46] C. Krauthammer, 'Clinton writ small', The Washington Post (25 June 2004).
[47] K. N. Waltz, Theory of international politics (New York, 1978), pp 126-27.
[48] S. M. Walt, 'Keeping the world 'off-balance'', in G. J. Ikenberry (ed.), America unrivalled (New York, 2002), p. 153.
[49] S. Huntington, 'The lonely superpower', Foreign Affairs (March – Fall, 1999), p. 42; The Primakov doctrine is one such example of possible balancing. It called for a strategic triangle between Russia, China and India to balance American power.
[50] P. Kennedy, The rise and fall of the great powers (London, 1989), p. 665.
[51] 'Unipolar moment' is a phrase coined in C. Krauthammer, 'The unipolar moment', Foreign Affairs (1991).
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Whether you require inpatient or outpatient surgical services, Memorial is able to provide high-quality care from our experienced and skilled staff. According to a 3rd party analysis, we have one of the lowest turnover times in the nation when compared to hospitals of similar size with similar cases. This means that our patients will typically have a shorter wait time leading up to an operation, and can get back to a normal life more quickly.
Some outpatient surgery procedures can be performed at Memorial's HealthPlex location.
Once your physician has scheduled a surgery at Memorial, patients will begin by preregistering for the procedure. Patients can preregister up to 2 or 3 weeks before the day of surgery. Patients will visit our CARE (Convenient Access Registration and Education) Unit, located in the Main Lobby of Memorial Medical Center.
In the CARE Unit, we will gather your medical and surgical history and get a list of your medications. While visiting CARE, patients meet with an anesthesiologist to discuss any concerns. All required preoperative testing will take place, such as laboratory tests or an EKG test. Patients will also be given instructions for what to do on the day of surgery and what to expect, including after their surgery. Patients will also review and sign surgery consent forms.
On the day before surgery, patients will receive a phone call from the hospital with more information about when and where to arrive for their surgery.
Patients may have to arrive up to 2 hours before the surgery is scheduled. Once you have arrived, our team will check your vital signs and complete any followup testing that is needed, such as laboratory testing. You will be put into a hospital gown and an IV will be started. We will update your medical history and prepare you for surgery. Once prepped, patients again visit with the surgeon, anesthesia and operating room team. Once the surgery is confirmed with the surgical team, patients are connected to monitoring systems and the surgery will be performed.
After surgery, patients are moved to the PACU (Post Anesthesia Care Unit), also known as the recovery room. Patients here are monitored by our nursing team as the anesthesia wears off and they go through phases of recovery. The PACU team will make sure patients are awake and alert, that pain is being controlled, and that their vital signs, such as blood pressure, oxygen, and temperature, are stable. Once patients meet the standards of care for PACU, they can be discharged if they had an outpatient procedure, or transferred to the acute care floors if they need to be hospitalized.


For those of you who regularly use fake views to drive up your video view counts, take note: YouTube is longer going to let that pass. The company says it has already begun "periodically" auditing the number of views a video has generated. During these checks, if YouTube deems that some of the views on a video are "fraudulent," it will remove those from the official counter underneath the video.
It should also help YouTube's relationships with advertisers, who now have a better reason to believe that the video they want to buy against is accurate about the number of views it has received.
Pfeiffenberger ends the post warning creators to be "extra careful" when choosing which third-party marketing firms to work with — some, you won't be surprised to learn, buy fake views.


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Motorola Moto G72 was released in Europe with 108MP camera, and more
The Moto G72 has a 6.6-inch pOLED screen with a refresh rate of 120Hz.
It is powered by a MediaTek G99 SoC and has uMCP storage and LPDDR4x RAM.
The phone will only get one Android update, but it will get security updates for three years.
On October 3, Motorola unveiled the Moto G72 in India, and the device is just now finding its way to Europe. The phone has a 6.6-inch pOLED screen with a 120Hz refresh rate. It is powered by a MediaTek G99 SoC.
It also has a 108-megapixel triple rear camera setup as well as a 16-megapixel selfie camera. Let's take a closer look at what the device can do and how much it costs.
The Moto G72 has a 6.6-inch pOLED screen with a resolution of 2400 x 1080 pixels, 10 bits of colour depth, and a refresh rate of 120Hz. It also works with HDR10, the DCI-P3 colour gamut, and touch sampling rates of up to 576Hz.
The device is powered by a MediaTek Helio G99 chipset and has uMCP storage and LPDDR4x RAM. On the software side, it runs Android 12 with the company's My UX skin on top. The Moto G72 will only get one Android update, but it will get security updates for three years.
25) As for the cameras, the back of the phone has a triple camera system with a 108MP main sensor, an 8MP ultra-wide unit, and a 2MP macro sensor. It has a 16MP camera on the front for selfies and video calls.
It has a rating of IP52 and comes with a 5,000mAh battery that can be charged quickly with a 33W cable. It also has two stereo speakers that work with Dolby Atmos and a 3.5mm headphone jack. Dual SIM, 4G, dual-band WiFi, Bluetooth 5.1, GNSS, NFC, and USB Type-C are all ways to connect to the device.
Motorola G72 will only be sold in a few European countries, and it will cost at least €260. But the prices will be different in each country. The phone comes in three different colours: Meteorite Grey, Mineral White, and Polar Blue.
Moto G72 appears on Geekbench; to launch next month
A listing on an e-commerce website earlier today revealed the Moto G72…


Fifa have found Chelsea guilty of illegally inducing Gael Kakuta to sign for the club from Lens.
Roman Abramovich's wealth will have no impact on the success of Chelsea.
Fifa found the English club guilty of illegally inducing French youth team player Gael Kukuta to join the club in 2007, breaking his contract in the process.
Lens complained to Fifa when Kakuta, broke his contract to sign for Chelsea two years ago, Lens saying that Chelsea had induced him to do so.
Fifa released a statement fining Gael Kakuta 780,000 and finding Chelsea "jointly and severally liable".
A restriction of four months on his eligibility to play in official matches is imposed on the player GÄ'«l Kakuta while the club FC Chelsea is banned from registering any new players, either nationally or internationally, for the two next entire and consecutive registration periods following the notification of the present decision.
Furthermore, the club, FC Chelsea, has to pay to RC Lens training compensation in the amount of 130,000.
Chelsea have the right to appeal against the decision and could take the case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, which seems highly likely.
Kakuta began his career at FC Lens in France.
Kakuta is a French Youth international.
He is an attacking player and can play wide or through the middle.
He suffered a double fracture of the ankle in a friendly against the Glenn Hoddle Academy.
Kakuta was voted the Cheslea Academy's Scholar of the Year in 2007/08 by staff and peers.
Kakuta has now been banned from playing football for four months.
Well I have an answer. MOAN LIKE YOU ALWAYS DO AND USE THIS AS AN EXCUSE FOR NOT WINNING THE PREM!


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It corrects hormonal imbalance and offers relief from menstrual disorders.


Upstart no more as it approaches its third decade, Victory Motorcycles has grown into a viable alternative to the American-made cruiser consumer by continuing to deliver well crafted, good-looking, and great-performing motorcycles to an audience hungry for choice. Case in point: the 2016 Magnum X-1 Stealth Edition.
Launched a couple of years ago to feed the burgeoning big-wheel-bagger craze, the Magnum was never anything more than Victory's successful Cross Country bagger stripped of its highway bars and augmented with a 21-inch front wheel, gaudy cosmetics, and a 100-watt stereo. With its scooped saddle, hawkish nose, and trendy accoutrements, the Magnum was, of course, a rousing success on both the boardwalk and the rally circuit. Last year, because Bagger Nation showed no signs of going gently (or quietly) into that soft goodnight of bike trends, Victory introduced the Magnum X-1, a slightly higher-priced edition outfitted with premium components, still gaudier paint, and an even louder stereo.
Victory Magnum X-1 SE. Photo by Thomas Weiss.
For 2016, the Magnum X-1 is called the Stealth Edition, and while it's a bit ridiculous to bestow such a moniker on an almost 800-pound, nearly nine-foot-long bagger, the Stealth Edition does eschew last year's trendy graphics and blinding chrome. (And despite selling out its initial production run, it also eschews last year's MSRP, coming in at about $1,000 less.) Available in dealerships since March, the X-1 SE is mainly a cosmetic package, dressed in a suede-smooth monochrome grey with color-matched components and blacked-out engine, exhaust, and wheels, with raw chrome accents on its leading edges. Still, with its deep-throated rumble, booming 200-watt surround-sound stereo and searing LED headlamp, the X-1 Stealth Edition is about as stealthy as one of Daenerys Targaryen's fire-breathing dragons.
Entertainment options can be controlled through the dash display. Photo by Thomas Weiss.
The stereo system connects to any Bluetooth-equipped device, such as an iPod or iPhone, or you can simply plug into the USB jack in the right saddlebag — particularly handy if you've ever drained your phone battery while riding and roaming. Using the informational LCD window on the dash, the rider can select sources from AM/FM/WX radio, USB, or Bluetooth. The volume is auto-synced, too, so it automatically lowers itself as speed decreases. For attention-seekers cruising the boardwalk, and especially those parked on Main Street, this is the ideal bagger for stylin' and profilin' — "stealth" be damned.
The matte gray paint gives the motorcycle its "stealth" name, but with the stereo you can still hear it coming a mile away. Photo by Thomas Weiss.
Further distinguishing the X-1 SE from the standard Magnum is its supple monochrome paint. It's flat-out gorgeous, and the color is matched up and down the bike from the inner fairing to the lower chin shroud, including speaker grilles and lid hinges. Passers-by were hard-pressed to admire the SE without drawing a hand across its velvety finish. Things got a little heated when one Magnum owner swore I was lying when I told him my Magnum X-1 came as-is straight from the dealership.
Accessory mini-apes put my wrists just below shoulder level, which felt fine and looked cool. Combined with that 21-inch front wheel, however, my X-1 SE was rather a pig to push around parking lots. Photo by Thomas Weiss.
The 21-inch front wheel is the largest offered by an OEM, and billet means it's carved from a single block of aluminum, providing strength and durability. In this case, unfortunately, the function doesn't necessarily follow the form. The large wheel makes slow-speed maneuvers even more of a slog than on standard baggers, rendering useless the same, perfectly reasonable 29-degree rake found on the Cross Country. Even with both feet firmly on the ground, muscling the 787-pound (dry) X-1 SE around parking lots is a lesson in patience and power. And, occasionally, futility.
The 21-inch front wheel carved from aluminum is one of the defining characteristics of the Victory Magnum X-1 SE. Photo by Thomas Weiss.
Once it gets going, though, the X-1 SE tracks beautifully on the street and handles as well on the twisties as it does the highway. Like the Cross Country's, the Magnum X-1's suspension — 5.1 inches of non-adjustable travel up front and a monoshock with 4.4 inches of air-adjustable play in the rear — and ABS-enabled braking — three 300 mm discs, two up front and one in rear — are both better than the Harley-Davidson Street Glide's. And while Victory doesn't provide power numbers and we couldn't get our X-1 to a dyno before press time, it's safe to say Victory's Freedom 106 still eats Harley's Twin Cam 103B for lunch — it always has.
Look folks, this is a massive bagger, effectively a touring bike without the top case. Terms like flickable and agile sure as hell don't apply here, but if you wanted to throw out adjectives like gutsy, surefooted, powerful, and relatively nimble, you'll get no arguments from me.
The Victory's rear end resembles nothing so much as a bunch of grey bananas, flipped upside-down. Photo by Thomas Weiss.
Victory knows how to make a long-distance machine; it's no secret the Cross Country Tour stands with any BMW K 1600 GTL or Honda Gold Wing, let alone the Harley Ultra or Electra Glides, as one of the better long-haul motorcycles on the road. But despite sharing a few creature comforts with its sister model, the Magnum X-1 Stealth Edition is just not that kind of motorcycle. For most bagger fans, that's okay. Now, a 5.8-gallon fuel tank is awesome. But, like most Big Twins, the Freedom 106 is a downright guzzler above 65 mph. I could literally see the needle on the fuel gauge falling from half to a quarter of a tank as I tried to make it to the hotel before dark. And as with a lot of bikes these days, that fuel gauge was annoying as all get-out. Even on the interstate it would read "F" for a solid hour after fill-ups, then drop to "E" within what seemed like minutes. Once that needle started to fall, man, it fell hard and fast.
Since I'm nitpicking, a couple more points: The X-1 SE wisely makes use of several of the Cross Country's finer long-haul amenities, such as the roomy, spring-mounted floorboards and capacious saddlebags. The fork-mounted fairing effectively brushes aside wind and debris from the upper body, although during one brief rain-soaked interstate blast I did daydream wistfully about fairing lowers. And the tinted clipped screen is, frankly, worthless beyond its appearance; prospective X-1 buyers hoping to do even light touring would be well advised to consider a larger shield. Finally, the low seat height paired with lip on the seat bucket forced me into a riding position that left my 33-inch inseam cramped after a few hours. If it weren't for the floorboards, it would have been a very long weekend indeed, and I'm just five feet, 11 inches tall. Taller riders will definitely want to consult the accessory catalog for alternate saddles.
The LED lights really work. Photo by Thomas Weiss.
The X-1 SE features LED lighting front and rear, and it is a revelation. The headlight certainly illuminates the night road better than any halogen I've let guide my way. The high-beam setting spreads the beam wide rather than pointing it up high, so it's not aimed at the eyes of oncoming drivers. Caught in a blinding rainstorm one night in Laconia, I experimentally (read: desperately) flipped on the brights, and not once was I flashed by a driver.
So while baggers may be the target du jour for purists, clearly there is an entire population of motorcyclists who are into this sort of thing. After all, Harley's Street Glide is still the number-one-selling motorcycle in the United States, and it's not real close. Now, at $23,499 the Magnum X-1 Stealth Edition is definitely not cheap (it is, in fact, a few hundred dollars more than the Street Glide Special). But for those who aren't afraid to think outside the bagger, another quality alternative to the bar-and-shield has arrived. I can't wait to see what Victory has in mind for its 20th anniversary.


A personal note. I attended Harvard College, receiving a BA degree in 1956.
"Fair Harvard," the university's alma mater, lacks fairness. Its motto "VERITAS" on its seal and class rings belies its establishment and admissions practices.
An ongoing November 2014 federal lawsuit filed by Students for Fair Admissions (SFFA) accused Harvard of "employing racially and ethnically discriminatory policies and procedures in administering the undergraduate admissions program" – Asian-American applicants harmed by the practice.
A study covering 20 years of admissions showed Asian-American applicants scored much better than other racial groups on academic merit, worse on personal attributes evaluated.
Since 2000, Asian-Americans had the lowest admission rate of any racial group despite higher test scores.
The ongoing lawsuit accused university officials of attempting to suppress data revealing its discriminatory practices.
In June 2013, the Supreme Court upheld race-conscious admissions at the University of Texas by a 4 -3 ruling.
Majority Justices Roberts, Alito, Thomas and Kennedy held that the university's admissions practice didn't violate the Constitution's equal protection guarantee. Justices Ginsburg, Breyer and Sotomayor disagreed.
Elena Kagan recused herself for prior involvement in the case as US Solicitor General.
Treating university applicants (or anyone else) differently based on race, ethnicity and/or religion is clearly discriminatory. Despite the High Court ruling, SFFA plaintiffs continue their pursuit of admissions fairness – despite little likely chance of prevailing following the Supreme Court's ruling, setting a disturbing new millennium precedent.
In the landmark 1954 Brown v. Board of Education unanimous ruling, the Supreme Court upheld the Equal Protection Clause of the 5th and 14th Amendment's, affirming that no state shall deny to anyone under its jurisdiction "equal protection of the laws," including the right to life, liberty and property – along with adherence to international, constitutional and US statute laws.
Brown v. Board of Education is the basis of ruling racial segregation illegal, the same applying to other discriminatory practices based on race, ethnicity or religion.
In Orwell's novel "Animal Farm," some animals were more equal than others – the way it is at Harvard, in America, other Western countries and most elsewhere.
Discrimination is common practice in most societies, corporate enterprises, academia, and interpersonal relations overall.
It violates the letter and spirit of human and civil rights laws – yet continues widespread anyway.


AFSCME is the union for 50,000 professionals in the behavioral health industry in 29 states across the country, and more are joining every day.
The U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved a bill to allow Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics (CCBHCs) in Oregon and Oklahoma to continue operating through at least June.
AFSCME strongly supports a bipartisan bill unveiled in Congress today that would expand mental health and addiction services in communities across the nation.
Called the "Excellence in Mental Health and Addiction Treatment Expansion Act," it seeks to expand past efforts by the federal government to respond to the increasing demand for mental health and substance use disorder services across the country.
TRENTON, N.J. – Members and leaders from AFSCME New Jersey are working after hours to elevate the behavioral health industry by visiting the homes of those who know it best – members who provide valuable behavioral health services across the Garden State.
Whether you're a union activist, a young AFSCME member eager to learn more, or just want to keep your fingers on the pulse of the labor movement, AFSCME's got a brand-new podcast for you. It's called #NoFilter.
Pro-worker members of Congress have re-introduced a bill that seeks to reduce workplace violence faced by emergency responders, behavioral health workers, nurses, physicians and other health care and social service workers.
Practicing transcendental meditation can help reduce or even reverse the symptoms of PTSD and depression in a new study of young people.
The findings, which appear in the journal Psychological Reports, indicate that participants who started practicing transcendental meditation saw notable improvements in their symptoms.
On March 31, behavioral health clinics in Oregon and Oklahoma stand to lose funding for mental health and addictions services with the expiration of the bipartisan Excellence in Mental Health and Addiction Treatment Expansion Act.
In the largest study of it's kind ever, international researches led by the Univertsity of Edinburgh, found hundreds of genes that can now be linked to increased risks of depression, shedding light on the origins of the condition and highlighting personality types that could be at risk.
According to a report in Science Today, after the study that involved two million people, scientists "studied information pooled from three large datasets of anonymised health and DNA records and pinpointed 269 genes that were linked to depression."
A report in Medical News Today says that new research suggests that bullying, including on social media, could actualy alter the brain structure of adolescents. As bullying can greatly increase physical and mental health risks, "the prevention of high school bullying could result in lifetime benefits of over $1 million per individual" according to the study.
A global team of researchers has found the first common genetic risk factors associated with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), a complex condition affecting around one in 20 children.
The team analysed genetic information from over 20,000 people affected with ADHD and over 35,000 people without the condition, the largest genetic study of ADHD to date.
A total of 279 behavioral health professionals at Cascadia Behavioral Healthcare in Portland, Ore., voted overwhelmingly in recent weeks to join Oregon AFSCME.
They become the latest in a wave of therapists, case managers, peers, support staff and other dedicated care providers who are uniting through AFSCME's United We Heal campaign to fix a broken system.
Before she began her career in behavioral health, Vialante Vieira had been in a drug and alcohol recovery program at Volunteers of America Oregon in Portland. Her experience at VOA gave her more than a path back to normalcy; it also helped her find her calling.
A new study conducted by researchers at the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) has revealed more about the organization and function of a brain structure that may serve a key role in linking stress detection to the development of adaptive behaviors.
They found that, during stress, dopamine (a major modulator of brain function) triggered a reduction in inhibition of the paraventricular nucleus of the thalamus (PVT). Notably, the disinhibition produced by dopamine made the PVT more sensitive to aversive outcomes.
When a pregnant woman comes to Hennepin Healthcare who's using or suspected of using opiates, inpatient social worker Liz Foltz springs into action.
There is a national debate underway about the regulation of health insurers and insurance benefit standards. To reduce regulatory burdens, the Executive Branch enacted changes that weaken essential health benefit requirements, which require coverage of mental health and substance use services. The Executive Branch has also proposed regulations that will expand the availability of health plans that can discriminate against people with mental health and substance use disorders.
AFSCME-represented workers at Volunteers of America Oregon (VOA) have reached a tentative agreement after 18 months of contentious negotiations that sparked multiple protests from workers and their union, including a May 14 sit-in that resulted in multiple arrests.
At the urging of United We Heal and AFSCME, the U.S. House has passed a student-loan repayment bill that will help those who provide substance-abuse treatment throughout the country. Our union is now focused on making sure the bill passes the U.S. Senate and is fully funded.
New Column Asks: What's the Answer to the Shortage of Mental Health Care Providers?
In a column in U.S. News, David Levine points out that "two distrubing trend lines are currently crossing in the area of mental health care. One line, tracking demand for such care, is rapidly rising....The other trend line, measuring the number of mental health care providers in practice, is barely holding steady.
Read more about New Column Asks: What's the Answer to the Shortage of Mental Health Care Providers?
Since the 1960s, Outside In has been an integral part of Portland, Oregon's, social services thanks to building one of the region's largest homeless programs. Now, the hardworking behavioral health professionals who work at Outside In are among AFSCME's newest sisters and brothers.
Over two days last week, workers at Outside In voted to form a union with Oregon AFSCME Council 75. A total of 128 workers will make up the bargaining unit, with the majority coming from Medical and Youth Services.
The U.S. Senate has passed its bipartisan Improving Access to Behavioral Health Information Technology Act to help behavioral health care providers – like psychologists and psychiatric hospitals – adopt electronic health records.


Brother furniture, which is the branch of brother enterprises founded in 1993, is located in Haining city, Zhejiang of China,covering an area of 52,000 square meters and more than 500 staffs work from us , now the factory set for design ,manufacture and sales together with a strong production capacity . With years of business growing , we have main products including upholstery sofa,living room seats ,dining room chair and bedroom bedding ,storage ottoman and so on .Products are really over the world on the market of North American, Europe,Canada, UK and France etc.
Based on Standard of our products in CA-TB-117&UK BS-5852&P2 legal requirements ,customer is really trusted and supported to us , even sometimes they provide the sample chairs for our original equipment manufacturer.
We have professional teams to make company arrangement and product quality of control , also we will try to establish the warehouse in overseas for convenience of trial order with small quantity when you first ordered or rush delivery date .
Q: Are you trading company or factory ?
A: We are manufacturers. We have our own showroom and factory ,covering more than 50000 square meters. You are welcomed to visit us .
Q: Where is your factory ?
A: We located in haining Zhejiang, one and half hours drive to Shanghai.
Q: Can you accept OEM or ODM?
A: Yes, customize product is available in our factory . Please send your design pictures to us ,then we talk about it with our professional designers and confirm well with you.
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Q: What is the lead time ?
A: It depends for the small order with fabric in stock, we can delivery in 7-15days .For container order, the lead time us usually 30-45days after the deposit .
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Contact us if you need more details on White Fabric Ottoman Stool Without Storage. We are ready to answer your questions on packaging, logistics, certification or any other aspects about Vintage Fabric Ottomans for Modern Waiting Room、Living Room Furniture Comfortable Ottoman Stool. If these products fail to match your need, please contact us and we would like to provide relevant information.


Steve Irwin (1962-2006) was a famous Australian wildlife expert, best known for his documentary series The Crocodile Hunter.
His children, Bindi and Robert, have become television personalities and conservationists, and Robert Irwin appeared with the Sesame Street Muppets in 2018.
A 2001 episode of Sesame Street features a parody of Irwin. The character, referred to as an Alphabet Explorer, speaks in an Australian accent and is seen wrestling with an crocodile during his down time.
In It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie, Fozzie Bear is pursued by a Safari Animal Tracker, a character who parodies Irwin and his series. The scene was originally slated to feature Irwin himself, who had to drop out due to a scheduling conflict.


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Columbus: 614-228-6353 Sunbury: 740-965-9900 Pataskala: 740-964-2205
Leslie "Red" Parkhurst
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1910s, '20s Class A Racing Champion.
Red Parkhurst was a leading racer of the 1910s and 1920s. He holds the distinction of being the first factory racer for Harley-Davidson. Parkhurst won a number of the top national races of his era and set a slew of speed records as a member of Harley-Davidson's powerful factory racing team from 1914 to 1920. He rode briefly for Excelsior in 1921 and retired from full-time racing after the 1922 season, although he raced in select events through 1924.
Parkhurst was born in Rapid City, South Dakota, in 1895. He moved with his family to Denver as a child. His father was a railroad man and later owned a small brewery. It was not uncommon for youngsters to go to work in that era, and such was the case with Parkhurst. One of his first jobs was as a gopher for a painting company. He was often given the task of driving the company truck, full of painting supplies, to job sites around Denver. He didn't last long on that job due to his propensity for speeding.
He later took a job at an Excelsior motorcycle dealership, learning to be a mechanic. Parkhurst pursued his love for speed and began racing motorcycles (after lying about his age) as an amateur at the age of 13. Riding his own Excelsiors, he established himself as one of the top Rocky Mountain region riders and primarily raced on the Tuilleries Motordrome board track in Denver.
By the time he was 16, Parkhurst was doing well enough on the boards that he began racing at other motordromes across the Midwest. In 1914, Harley-Davidson, which up to that point had largely ignored the national competition, was making plans to form a racing team. As it turned out, Parkhurst was in the right place at the right time. He had performed well at Milwaukee's new motordrome and Harley-Davidson's racing manager, Bill Ottaway, asked the 18-year-old rider to join the company's new racing team. Parkhurst eagerly accepted, moved to Milwaukee and became the very first member of the Harley-Davidson team.
With Parkhurst riding, Harley-Davidson tested its new racer at low-key regional races early in 1914 in Wisconsin and Minnesota. Parkhurst won most of these regional events against the non-national competition. Testing continued through the 1914 season and the team entered the prestigious Dodge City 300 to assess the reliability of its machines in real racing conditions.
In 1915, Harley-Davidson's racing team was ready and launched a serious assault on the big national events. Parkhurst's teammate, Otto Walker, was the star of the year, winning the big events at Venice, California (where Parkhurst was second) and Dodge City. But later in the season, Parkhurst started making his mark, winning several events including the big 100-mile national on the dirt track in Saratoga, New York.
A lavish new two-mile motordrome had been built in the Sheepshead Bay region of Brooklyn, New York. The FAM hosted a national championship event at Sheepshead Bay in 1916 on the same date as the Dodge City Classic. Harley-Davidson decided to send board-track expert Parkhurst to New York instead of Dodge City. Parkhurst easily won the 100-mile FAM national championship in front of the massive grandstands that were packed with 18,000 fans – perhaps the largest crowd to see a motorcycle race up to that point.
In magazine articles, Parkhurst was often noted as always having a big smile and being one of the crowd favorites. He was said to shine on rough tracks. At 6' 4" tall, topped by a thick head of red hair (thus, the nickname Red), he cut a rather imposing image when standing next to the mainly diminutive community of motorcycle racers. Harley-Davidson used images of a smiling Parkhurst in countless race ads during the mid-to-late 1910s. He became a true sports celebrity. One of Parkhurst's good friends and biggest fans was fellow Coloradoan Jack Dempsey, the world's heavyweight boxing champion.
During World War I, Parkhurst stayed in Milwaukee and worked as a truck mechanic.
After the war, Parkhurst was asked to rejoin Harley-Davidson's racing team. One of the first big nationals after the war was the 200-miler held in June of 1919 at Ascot Park in Los Angeles. Parkhurst made a solid return to the track with a second-place finish behind teammate Ralph Hepburn.
In September of that year, Parkhurst earned his biggest victory in the 200-mile road race held in Marion, Indiana. With the Dodge City race not held in 1919, the Marion race (now run under the auspices of the newly formed Motorcycle and Allied Trades Association – M&ATA - taking over from the defunct FAM) became the biggest race of the year, with 18 factory riders from Harley-Davidson, Indian and Excelsior. Parkhurst took over the lead of the race from teammate Otto Walker just past the halfway point. Indian's Teddy Carroll threatened his lead late in the event, but Carroll's bike broke a valve with just two laps to go and Parkhurst went on to victory. Hepburn and Walker took second and third to make it a clean sweep for Harley-Davidson.
In February of 1920, Harley-Davidson went to Daytona Beach and Parkhurst set a number of short-lived speed records. In June of that year, Harley-Davidson rented the Sheepshead Bay track (considered the fastest board track in the country) to attempt a 24-hour solo record. Parkhurst set a new distance record for 24 hours, covering 1,452.75 miles despite having to wait out two hours of hard rain, then riding on a very slick track as the boards dried out. Exhausted by the solo run, Parkhurst broke the existing mileage record with over an hour to go and could have pulled in, but bravely held on to complete 24 hours.
In 1921, Parkhurst took a job offer from Excelsior and became a Midwest sales rep for the company and raced for them, much to the chagrin of Harley loyalists. He had a miserable season with Excelsior and returned to racing Harleys in 1922. By this time, Parkhurst had a family and was no longer racing full time. He continued to race sporadically through 1924, earning a couple of podium finishes on his adopted hometown track, the Milwaukee Mile, at M&ATA and AMA nationals held there in 1923 and '24.
After retiring from racing, Parkhurst continued working in sales for companies such as Firestone and Valvoline. He retired in the 1960s and died in 1972 while living in Washington State. He was 76.
Hours Mon - Thu 10 AM - 7 PM | Fri - Sat 10 AM - 5 PM | Sun 11 AM - 4 PM
Please note: On Monday, service is closed in Columbus and Pataskala. Service is open on Monday in Sunbury.
Sunbury Location
7754 St. Rt. 36/37 E.
Sunbury, OH 43074
Pataskala Location
12477 E. Broad St. S.W.
Pataskala, OH 43062


In fact, this is a technician (garage, fuel, repairs) – but I added the opportunity to drive the forest (very few people are interested in just a technical tool). As well as real, the car has confident passableness! There are some possible inconsistencies in the TMX – but this is deliberately adjusted to the game! A huge request not to leave negative comments like "go .. but", etc. – constructive criticism is welcome!
The main feature of the mod is made in 3D Max from "zero" by the author.


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Environment Pakistan
Over 3.3m tonnes of plastic is wasted every year
December 27, 2021 December 27, 2021 Abdul khalique 33 Views 0 Comments news, Over 3.3m tonnes, Pakistan, plastic is wasted, plastic is wasted every year, Scientists 5 min read
The management of plastic waste has turned out to be a gigantic task across the globe and the situation is compounded in developing countries like Pakistan with flawed municipal waste management systems. This ultimately has an adverse effect on both human lives as well as the environment.
Realizing the seriousness of the issue and its adverse effects on the ecosystem, the Pakistan Science Foundation in collaboration with UNESCO, the UNDP and a few other donor agencies had launched a series of events in Islamabad over a past couple of months mainly to create awareness among the residents on the hazardous effects of plastic waste on human life, fauna and flora.
According to data collected by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) over 3.3 million tonnes of plastic is wasted every year in Pakistan and most of it ends up in landfills, unmanaged dumps or strewn about land and water bodies across the country. The waste mainly consists of plastic bags, PET bottles and food scraps, and most of this waste is not disposed of adequately.
An interesting depiction was made in the WWF report that in case we put together all the waste generated in Pakistan at one site it would become double the size of the K2 — the second highest peak in the world.
The global cumulative stock of plastic waste that is inadequately managed is predicted to increase from 61 to 72m metric tonnes in 1990 to 5,109 to 5,678 metric tonnes by 2050, a World Bank report suggests.
At least nine million tonnes of plastic end up in oceans across the world every year that makes up 80 per cent of all marine debris from the surface water to the deep-sea sediments, an IUCN report suggests. According to estimates, in case things are not put in the right frame by 2050, the oceans across the globe would have 859 to 950m tonnes of plastic waste.
Assessing ingestion from nature to people, based on the WWF study which was carried out by the University of Newcastle, Australia, showed that people on average could be ingesting about five grams of plastic every week, equivalent to the weight of a credit card, through the air they breathe, the food they eat and, especially, the water they drink. It suggests that people are consuming about 2,000 tiny pieces of every week. That's approximately 21 grams a month, just over 250 grams a year.
Tackling the problem
So, in the face of such a grave situation, the Pakistan Science Foundation took the initiative of creating awareness among people on plastic waste and the hazards associated with its improper disposal. At the last event held in this regard at the International Islamic University Old Campus near Faisal Mosque earlier this month, students of some five universities of Islamabad displayed their low-cost machines to recycle plastic waste. All the five projects were selected from more than two dozen projects pitched by the universities.
The students briefed the participants about their projects and also gave demonstrations regarding the procedures of making tough tiles and plastic strings by recycling plastic waste. They said that the tough tiles that are made up of plastic waste are 400 times stronger and more durable than regular clay tough tiles.
The speakers praised the students who had come up with a low-cost solution to recycle plastic waste and hoped that the machines made by the students would be replicated and refined for commercial use by the industry and municipalities across the country.
The objective of the programme was to sensitize the residents of Islamabad about the hazardous impact of unmanaged plastic waste and that was the reason their focus mainly remained on youth, senior scientific officer at the Pakistan Science Foundation Syeda Rehana Batool informed Bol News.
She said that they wanted to sensitize people, especially youth, about plastic waste management and the way the students, universities and schools' managements had enthusiastically participated in these events showed their interest and concern about environmental degradation caused by improper plastic waste management. The concluding ceremony of the five-event series was marked by a walk by the students of various universities and their faculty members to highlight the issue.
Government's efforts
Talking to this writer during the walk, Additional Secretary Ministry of Science and Technology Dr Syed Attaur Rehman said the ministry was alive to the situation and would go the extra mile in containing the use of plastic from society.
He said that it took several hundred years for a one-time-use plastic bag or utensil to decompose, and added that if corrective measures are not taken now, the whole world would become a junkyard of plastic.
Living up to its responsibility toward this global problem, the government is taking a number of measures to contain the spread of plastic waste-related pollution and in this connection a ban on the use of plastic bags in the federal capital and a few other cities including Lahore and Hunza was imposed while in due course the one-time-use plastic bags and other material would be replaced with biodegradable plastic bags.
The government was also making the process of garbage collection and its disposal efficient where plastic waste would be segregated before taking the garbage to the dumping or landfill sites.
Source: The Bol News
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Architecture, Art, Design & Built Environments
Cast-in-Place Steel: Robots to 3D-Print Metal Bridge in Holland
Article by Urbanist, filed under Cities & Urbanism in the Architecture category
Designed to span a historic canal of Amsterdam, this cutting-edge structure will bridge traditional and automatic construction techniques using continuous extrusion technology to generate three-dimensionally-complex, self-supporting steel space frames. Imagine for a moment a pair of robots scaling the very structures they are building as they build them, walking themselves out over a bridge from both sides to meet in the middle.
Having already created a series of increasingly successful small-scale prototypes, Dutch design firm Heijmans (well known for houses built in one day and glow-in-the-dark bike paths in The Netherlands), tech startup MX3D and designer Joris Laarman are working together to make this design/build concept a reality.
Programmed to extrude and weld together steel segments, specialized robotic builders are able to assemble a network of structural lines and curves to form a load-bearing bridge in this case, already the first project of its kind in the world, and could be deployed to frame tall buildings in the future as well.
The approach of casting a material in place, generally associated with concrete, is suddenly a realistic possibility for metallic substances as well. Potential applications are myriad, from public infrastructure to residential, commercial and institutional architecture.
"Construction and design are currently rather separate factors in construction – the architect designs something and the constructor interprets the design and builds what he thinks is needed," says Jurre van der Ven, Heijmans' Innovation Manager. "But using 3D printing for a bridge makes design and construction operate hand-in-hand. For instance, both activities are done at the same time, instead of first building the structure and then adding the design later. This means we will also have to start looking at design in a completely different manner."
Refined and optimized, such techniques and technologies will ultimately bring down the cost of construction, reduce building waste and help automate worksites. The first real-world application being a bridge is no coincidence, but rather a "fantastic metaphor for connecting the technology of the future with the city's historic past, in a way which would reveal the best aspects of both worlds."
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By Daniel Silva
Book Number 4 in the Gabriel Allon Series.
It was an ordinary-looking photograph. Just the portrait of a man. But the very sight of it chilled Allon to the bone. Art restorer and sometime spy Gabriel Allon is sent to Vienna to authenticate a painting, but the real object of his search becomes something else entirely: to find out the truth about the photograph that has turned his world upside down. It is the face of the unnamed man who brutalized his mother in the last days of World War II, during the Death March from Auschwitz. But is it really the same one? If so, who is he? How did he escape punishment? Where is he now?
Fueled by an intensity he has not felt in years, Allon cautiously begins to investigate; but with each layer that is stripped away, the greater the evil that is revealed, a web stretching across sixty years and thousands of lives. Soon, the quest for one monster becomes the quest for many. And the monsters are stirring…
This book is in the following genres: Espionage, Mystery, Thriller
Fifteen years ago Tom Clancy was an insurance broker with a love for naval history. In 1984, his first novel, The Hunt for Red October, was published and he was catapulted onto the bestseller list, he received praise from Former U S President Reagan, saying his book was "non-put-downable." and it was later famously made(…)


Hi! I am Alex. I live in a small city of Chernivtsi in Ukraine. It's a charming town with nice architecture and interesting history. I work as a teacher and translator. I like travelling, reading, listening to nice music and a plenty of other things.
Счастье – это свойство характера.
Sense of humour and love of music is obligatory!!!


Virtual reality (VR) provides a design space consisting of three-dimensional computer images where participants can interact with these images using natural human motions in real time. In the field of engineering design, prototyping and design verification have provided the initial application areas for VR. The research presented in this paper takes the scenario one step further by incorporating free-form deformation techniques and sensitivity analysis into the virtual world such that the designer can easily implement analysis-based shape design of a structural system where stress considerations are important. NURBSbased free-form deformation (NFFD) methods and direct manipulation techniques are used as the interface between the VR interaction and the finite element model. Sensitivity analysis is used to allow the designer to change the design model and immediately view the effects without performing a re-analysis. An engine connecting rod is analyzed to demonstrate how virtual reality techniques can be applied to structural shape design.
Yeh, Tsung-Pin and Vance, Judy M., "Applying Virtual Reality Techniques to Sensitivity-Based Structural Shape Design" (1997). Mechanical Engineering Conference Presentations, Papers, and Proceedings. 34.